Photo Blog: Chassis 3643 Refurb Project, RHD Conversion and more.

3643 has landed in Australia just waiting for Customs clearances now.
I just found out the weird front spoiler is a Gran Turismo item. I wondered of its origin, thanks ProvaMo. I plan to remove it though is there anyone interested in it?

Picked up 3643 today......its been on a long journey. Last leg was a 450km tow home.
Now to test a few things then stip down. Hopefully that ZF is ok

Congratulations on finally getting her home. Keep us up to date on the progress.

Cheers, will post up the whole process. Trying to decide about going back to standard flares or Group 5 Flares? Im liking standard but a lot of the body has been cut away....

Also motor is seized, looks like condensation has got into the engine via the intake. But engine number matches body so happy in that regard.

Pulled cracked screen to measure up for replacement.Came out ok.
A bit of surface rust under seal but nothing to scary.

Pulled engine cover as engine is seized. Hoping damage isn't to bad and original block is salvageable.

are you going to pull engine out OR try to free it in place?

Originally i hoped to get the car driving before stripping but that is not possible now. Will pull the motor and strip.

Was the true condition of the car disclosed to you by BHCC?

yeah no dramas with BHCC.

look forward to watching it progress, the shipping seemed awefully fast? who did they use?

I used America West to purchase and ship the car. I'm happy with the car...

sounds like a heck of a project you have going. I look forward to seeing the progress.

I like the rims.

Simon

quote:

Originally posted by AlbanyGT40:
Cheers, will post up the whole process. Trying to decide about going back to standard flares or Group 5 Flares? Im liking standard but a lot of the body has been cut away....

Also motor is seized, looks like condensation has got into the engine via the intake. But engine number matches body so happy in that regard.

Another Pantera owner quite near to me has changed his car from left to right hand drive.

He had the dash made by an EX TVR man from the Blackpool factory and the quality is A1, he does of course have the mould, if you would like contact details let me know.
Peter with 3840 in Manchester England.

Original cars are the type I prefer, but its your motor car.

Peter Hi it's Sharkey. Please PM your email address & fee so I can paypal you $ to inspect the GT5-S.

I don't know how to send you a PM. I went to the members section, could not find first or last name.
Thkx

Hi Peter
There is a Guy local to me who makes a RHD dash but thanks for information.

Started on the flares today as you know the flares on my car never looked right. Today I chipped away the fibreglass and found that a previous Owner has sliced the guards bent them out to make a flare and fibreglassed over them. The fibreglass came off pretty easy. Plenty of metal to mess around with...

Pulled the Ugly GT front spoiler off today.

Right front not so pretty.

Chipped the fibreglass off the rear guard and it's the same as the front

Radiator out, not sure where to look for rust?

quote:

Originally posted by AlbanyGT40:
Started on the flares today as you know the flares on my car never looked right. Today I chipped away the fibreglass and found that a previous Owner has sliced the guards bent them out to make a flare and fibreglassed over them. The fibreglass came off pretty easy. Plenty of metal to mess around with...

From the way the flares looked, I had my suspicions this is what they had done.

Not looking good.
To much Bondo!



Kjeld

quote:

Originally posted by Joules:

quote:

Originally posted by AlbanyGT40:
Started on the flares today as you know the flares on my car never looked right. Today I chipped away the fibreglass and found that a previous Owner has sliced the guards bent them out to make a flare and fibreglassed over them. The fibreglass came off pretty easy. Plenty of metal to mess around with...

From the way the flares looked, I had my suspicions this is what they had done.

It will be fine. The arches are easily fixed and the front left will hammer out. Motor comes out today.

Engine out,chassis looks good.

ZF looks to be ok,oil a little black but no glitter in it.Selects all gears and rolls over nice. Need to open it up and have a look inside.

Safety wire the ring gear while you are in there.

Check on both sides, especially behind the gas tank.

There is a "cavity" that runs forward if the bulkhead, above the lower sills. This area can collect fine sand and dust, which can be a rust-prone area. I vacuumed mine out very well, and put a bunch of bedliner-type stuff in there.

It probably doesn't help if corrosion is there already, but you will never have better access than now.....

Rocky

yep all looks good in the side pods. Got a light in each side and all looks good. Lots of dead spiders, grim and plant material. Planning to vac out and spray a fish oil product in there.

Still stripping the car. Wiring harness is completely out, most of interior gone. Doors stripped down and removed, very happy most of the Stainless trim came off no issue except for left roof channel stainless trim which someone had siliconed on....took hours to get it off without destroying it. Next step is onto hoist to strip suspension and mount to rotisserie....

Also i would like to remove the body tags before painting chassis/ body. Can the original rivets still be bought?

quote:

Originally posted by Sharkey:
Peter Hi it's Sharkey. Please PM your email address & fee so I can paypal you $ to inspect the GT5-S.

I don't know how to send you a PM. I went to the members section, could not find first or last name.
Thkx

No need Sharkey, thats what DeTomaso friends are for.

Thanks to Tony for supplying me a RHD dash.Fits perfect, also got a set of steel Grp4 flares but not sure if I'm up to fitting them. Good thing is the rears completely cover the old body flare mods.

RHD conversion coming along. Decided to leave all the LHD brackets in place so the car can be returned to LHD.

Steering works well, used an Eacort rack with some machining.

Stayed away from the LHD pedal box opening and VIN number.

Booster plate made and fitted.

Pedal spacing is good.

Now that RHD conversion is done. It's time to fit the flares, still yet to secure a set of Grp 4 flares. I made some spacers to set the car at desired ride height. I also fitted new suspension arm bushes and aligned car. Now the wheels are in the correct position I can centre the flares over the wheels.

Thanks for documenting with pics the conversion to RHD. I had never seen the change before. Nice job!

More work. Fitted to rotisserie.

Underneath looks good, need to scrape all the body sealer off. A couple of dents to fix.

The best way to remove the under coat is with a propane torch and a putty knife to start. Been there.
Looking good!

Front right damage repaired, thanks to Mike Mayberry for the parts.

Damage cut out

New metal part welded in.

Smoothed off, bumper fits now. Still needs filling before painting.

Terrific, neat to see the construction under the sheet metal. Thanks for taking time to share the pics.

Still scraping the body sealer off. Epic job.

It looks like a very nice rustfree underbody .

Simon

Im very happy with the car. There is very little rust.

Chassis looks amazing. That is excellent. Typically, I see crushed box sections from aggressive jacking. As pointed out already, nice and rust free.

Overall the car has been great value for what I paid. I think the dodgy custom flares scared off a lot of buyers and the weird front spoiler. Once all those items were removed the car itself is in very good condition. Long way to go though.

Looks like you have a great foundation to work with Albany. Congrats!! Keeping an eye on your progress ;-)

Moping up the rest of the body sealer with thinners and rags. Going to have a big push to get past this job....lol.

Tick the main floor off the list.

Engine bay body sealer removed. Nearly ready for a light blast.

thats a pretty good looking body.
keep us posted.
Simon

Front done....cleaning this stuff off has to be the worse part of the build.

Looks good. Keep up the good work!

Excellent... she turned out to be quite clean...congratulations.

Finally got the car fully blasted. The body is an excellent condition, some minor surface rust but no rust holes. Blaster tells me there was no undercoat on the car.

Another

Engine Bay

Floor

Rear deck lid

The other side

Rear

Front shot

Front boot

Conditioned the bare metal and epoxy primed.

Another shot

And another

One fresh Pantera ready for the build. Swinging panels next.

Well done! Thank you for posting the detailed photos.
What's the box to the right in the front compartment? Looks unfamiliar to me.

Its the RHD conversion pedal box, similar to the LHD side box. I have converted the car to RHD but left all the LHD brackets in place so the car canrevert if needed.

Nice base to start with. When I ever get to that stage I would be very happy to find the body so well preserved. ;-)

I can tell you it was a great relief.

quote:

Originally posted by AlbanyGT40:
Its the RHD conversion pedal box, similar to the LHD side box. I have converted the car to RHD but left all the LHD brackets in place so the car canrevert if needed.

Thanks. Sorry, I scrolled back now and found you had explained that in detail. Nice!

Your RH side pedal box appears a bit lower than the left and the face is more towards the front of the car.
Is this typical of RHD cars?

That car with the RHD pedal box seems like a perfect candidate for a dropped battery in the front trunk. Hope you're not planning on putting it in back near the right side headers- it's hot and pretty inaccessible back there if you ever need to service it or the electrical panel on the firewall, and about the last thing a Pantera needs is more weight in the rear...

Yeah the RHD drive box is suited to the custom fabricated pedal plate and pedals. It’s a full custom job and not intended to mirror the left side. Im not going to run a booster at this stage. My GT40 had non boosted brakes and I loved it.

The battery is going in the LHD pedal box recess. I will make a cover for it. I will use a new small Lithium battery. will be safely tucked away and look clean. I want to be able to put a bag in the front section tray so no dropped battery.

Hi Dave, great to see that you are really cracking on with your car, everything you are doing looks brilliant and what a great idea with the battery, as you know I am also converting but not as far on as you now! I will send some pics.
All the best Richard.

Awesome Richard send me some pics and lets catch up

quote:

Originally posted by AlbanyGT40:
The battery is going in the LHD pedal box recess. I will make a cover for it. I will use a new small Lithium battery. will be safely tucked away and look clean. I want to be able to put a bag in the front section tray so no dropped battery.

That was my thought when I saw the photos, ideal spot for a small high capacity battery.

For nor'easter; it is common to space the pedals forward a bit for us tall guys, I have a 1" pedal spacer on my car. 1.5" is about the max you can get before the booster interferes with the hood.

Maybe becausethe altenator was on the R.H. side the RH driver was moved a little forward.
Simon

1972 #3468.

You have no idea how inspirational your progress posts are. My car has been off the road since 1991 and I dream of the car running and driving on the SO Cal roads again.
Just need to find a reputable, dependable shop in So Cal that knows Panteras.

quote:

Originally posted by 72Pre-L and Aussie Falcon Guy:
1972 #3468.


Just need to find a reputable, dependable shop in So Cal that knows Panteras.

So Cal is the the epicenter of Pantera ownership. Have you reached out to the various clubs/owners to get recommendations? I'm sure there are several to chose from.

You are in luck. Don is one of the best and he is located in Elsinore just a 40 minute drive from Hemet. http://fullthrottlepanteras.com/

quote:

Originally posted by 72Pre-L and Aussie Falcon Guy:
1972 #3468.

You have no idea how inspirational your progress posts are. My car has been off the road since 1991 and I dream of the car running and driving on the SO Cal roads again.
Just need to find a reputable, dependable shop in So Cal that knows Panteras.

Contact Tommy Hodges (Extreme Pantera) 1-562-301-0583 Tommy is in SoCal, Very Knowledgeable!

Cool. Another group 4. I think they look BA. where did u get the flares

Not sure who’s they are, bought them used.